How to Get Fresh Crisp Bed Linens in Minutes

Who doesn’t enjoy the look of freshly ironed sheets?  For years I used to iron my sheets and even my duvet every Sunday.  The result was worth it but it took about an hour out of my day.  In addition, I was only able to enjoy the fruits of my labor for not even 24 hours, because after a night of sleeping in the bed the sheets would be wrinkled again.  

I had originally purchased Downy Wrinkle Releaser for a few cotton/linen dresses and shirts of mine after watching the advertisements on TV.  The concept of simply spraying with Downy Wrinkle Releaser and then gently tugging the wrinkle affected area seemed too easy not to try myself.  It most certainly worked and has been a great product for those days when I am in a rush and need to quickly de-wrinkle clothes before work.  

Back to the bed linens- One Sunday I became fed up with the weekly ironing and thought I would try Downy Wrinkle Releaser on my sheets instead of the good old iron.  It worked like a dream!! I can now have the crisp ironed sheet look with the added bonus of a fresh downy laundry smell in a matter of minutes!  Weekends and free time in general are extremely sacred.   Thanks to Downy  Wrinkle Releaser I now have an hour of my Sunday back, while still achieving of a pristine looking bed.  

Housewarming Gift Ideas for Spring

Host/Hostess gifts can sometimes be a challenge to think up.  Wine is always an easy go to, but lately I have grown tired of being so predictable and have been on a search for great gift ideas.  Here are a few of my favorite housewarming gifts for spring.

Agate Coasters

When hosting a party, I always make it a point to have my coasters strategically placed around the house and in abundance.  As a hostess or host, you are always wanting protect your home from accidents (ex. water rings on wood surfaces), so it's important to set your guests up for success and keep coasters easily accessible.  Why not have chic and unique coasters, like these agate coasters from West Elm?!?  These coasters come in a variety of colors that can definitely add a spring-like feel to any space and a personalized touch to your gift by choosing a color that may work best with your hostess/host's room decor. 

A Beautiful Book

Depending on your hostess or host's interest, a really well done coffee table book or cookbook can be a great gift.  A few of my favorites include: Scalamandre Haute Decor, Beauty at Home, Plenty More, Houses of Veranda and Ad Hoc at Home.  

A Fragrant Candle

Candles are a staple in my home.  Each room has at least one (and sometimes more than one) candle with its own unique scent.  Fragrant candles are a great addition to your coffee table, bedroom and of course the bathroom!  There are so many deliciously fragrant candles on the market, you really can't go wrong gifting your host/hostess with a beautiful candle.  If you are concerned about selecting the right scent, do a little research on your host/hostess to figure out their scent preferences.  If you aren't inclined to do that, here are a few that I would highly recommend:  Nest Fragrances Blue Garden, Williams-Sonoma Vert Frais, Voluspa French Cade & Lavender, NEST Fragrances Luxury Mini Votive Set, Jo Malone Wood Sage & Sea Salt. 

A Set of Gourmet Chutneys or Jams

When I am hosting guests, especially overnight, there is nothing I love more than to receive a set of delicious and unique chutneys or jams.  Why?  Because I can use them right away!  Chutneys make a great addition to any cheeseboard and jam is a must have when I am hosting guests for breakfast.  For chutney, I am a huge fan of the Virginia Chutney Company's entire line of products, as you may or may not have noticed from their regular appearance in my cheesescapes.  For jam, I am really loving the Eat This jam company (they were also mentioned as one of Oprah's Favorite things this past December).  These jams have very unique flavor combinations that work beautifully together and can be paired with both savory and sweet foods.  Both the chutneys and jams come in very unique flavors and beautiful packaging, making them ideal housewarming gifts.  *I recommend gifting a set of 3 chutneys or jams.*

My belief is that a housewarming gift should be somewhat unique but also practical.  A pretty coffee table book or set of fancy jams might not be something that the gift recipient would buy for themselves, but they would certainly use and enjoy if they were gifted with these items.  Whatever you decide to bring, as long as it's a thoughtful gift your host/hostess will be appreciative. 

Chinoiserie-Inspired Tablescape

If there is one thing I love in terms of decor, it's a splash of chinoiserie.  Around my house I have all sorts of little chinoiserie touches like my foo dogs on the dining room window sill, my giant ginger jar in the bedroom and my beautiful tea jars in the bathroom.  The colors, patterns and styles associated with chinoiserie decor add such fabulous and unique dimension to the overall aesthetic of my home.  The hardest part of incorporating this particular style of decor into my home has been to refrain from oversaturating my house in chinoiserie, because I love it so much and could very easily get carried away.  

Recently Williams-Sonoma debuted a new collection of dinnerware in honor of the Chinese New Year called the New Moon Collection.  Of course the moment I laid eyes on the collection I fell in love with every piece!  In an effort to avoid getting carried away and oversaturating my table (just like my rule for home decor), I kept my purchase to a single set of the New Moon accent plates.  Why the accent plates over the other pieces?  These New Moon accent plates are colorful, fun and could certainly transform my table into a beautiful and unique setting.  

For this tablescape- I referenced the colors used on the New Moon plates to figure out the best accent colors to incorporate into this table design.  For the setting, I chose to go start with these navy blue quilted placemats (similar here).  I framed my everyday dishes with my new rattan chargers from World Market.  This provided a very neutral foundation to ensure that my accent plates would pop.  The gold rim on the accent plates made it an easy decision to use brass napkin rings (which also gave my classic white napkins a little luster). In addition, the gold tray was a natural fit for the base of the centerpiece.  

For the flowers- I was all about the yellow freesias.  Freesias are in abundance at the store right now and I love their intensely colored stems and petals.  To finish off the centerpiece, I situated my rock-cut crystal votives around the base of the flower vase.  Votives are a great way to enhance the ambiance at your dining table (and a favorite table accessory of mine).  For drinkware- I opted for my highball glasses for water, bordeaux glasses and champagne coupes (why not have a little bubbly at your next dinner party?).   

This might be one of my favorite tablescapes for two reasons.  The first reason being, I love chinoiserie.  The second reason is that I was able to create an entirely new look for my table with the addition of only two new accessories (accent plates and fresh flowers).  I think I am most amazed to see how the slightest change can give a tabletop aesthetic a completely new look.  I hope this tablescape has inspired you to explore the possibilities for tableware that you might already own. It certainly has inspired me!

St. Patty's Day Sundae

This St. Patrick's Day I have decided to serve up a very sweet (and slightly alcoholic) dessert to accompany a few other local favorites.  DC is home to so many fabulous cupcake and macaron shops, so it was an obvious choice to incorporate both types of desserts in my St. Patty's Day spread.  In addition to the cookies and cake, ice cream was a must have for this festive sugar extravaganza.  I started experimenting with different flavor ideas and finally landed on a Creme de Menthe Chocolate Sunday.  As per my mantra with the recipes that I share, this is super easy to make and tastes delicious!  Best part?  You can actually assemble these sundaes ahead of time and store them in the freezer, so when your guests arrive the only thing you have to do is serve and enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 Pint Vanilla Bean Ice Cream or Gelato
• 2 oz Creme de Menthe
• Chocolate Fudge Sauce
• Chopped Andes Mint Candies
• Chocolate Curls
• 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
• 2 TBS Powdered Sugar 

Instructions

1. In a blender, combine 1 pint of ice-cream and 2 oz of Creme de Menthe
2. Once combined, pour contents from blender back into ice cream container and return to freezer to firm up again
3. Meanwhile, in a bowl combine 1 cup of Heavy Whipping Cream and 2 TBS of Powdered Sugar.  Beat with a hand mixer until cream starts to form firm peaks (about 1 minute), then set aside. 
4. Once the ice-cream has firmed up, remove and scoop into an ice cream dish, festive glass or champagne coupe
5. Drizzle hot fudge over ice cream, add a tablespoon of andes mint pieces
6. Then add a dollop of whipped cream and finish with a few chocolate shavings

**Note- you can either serve this as a single or double serving based on the serving dish you select.  I have pictured both a single serving in the champagne coupes and a double serving in my green goblets.

Creating a Functional and Organized Laundry Space

I have always  dreamed of a "Martha Stewart-Inspired" laundry room with ample countertop space for folding towels and a wall of shelves for storing all of my cleaning supplies.  Unfortunately, that just isn't my reality.  Living in the city you are lucky if you have a washer/dryer in your apartment.  Most urban dwellers have a laundry "closet" (i.e. doors to hide their washer/dryer), which believe it or not is still a pretty nice luxury.  Even in such tight quarters you can make the most of your space and store all of your laundry essentials.  Below is a breakdown of how I have made the most out of both my previous and current laundry closets.  Hopefully this will inspire you to see your space with new found potential or maybe even try a new laundry product.  

Items in my Laundry Supply Basket

• Iron- I rarely go to the dry cleaners.  Reason being?  Ironing is not hard, doesn't take a long time and saves a ton of money when you do it yourself. This video from Martha Stewart is really helpful for understanding Dress Shirt Ironing 101.
• Spray Starch, Sizing and Spray Bottle filled with Water- To accommodate different fabrics and preferences (I like a crisp shirt but my husband likes a soft shirt).
• Tide-to-Go Pen-for small stains this pen has been a lifesaver!  If you don't have one, run to the store right now!  I cannot tell you how many times I have been able to save an article of clothing thanks to this pen.  
• Spray Oxiclean- for large and/or tough stains, I pre-treat stains with a spray or two of oxiclean before laundering
• Corn Starch - If you have a grease stain, apply corn starch immediately to the affected area.  I hosted a Super Bowl party and someone accidentally spilled taco meat on my linen dining room chair.  I cleaned the chair with a damp rag and detergent, then applied a generous layer of cornstarch to the affected area.  After a few days of letting the corn starch sit and work its magic, I vacuumed it off the chair and the stain was gone!
• Real Simple Delicates Wash Bag - it's so devastating to open the wash and find a strap or delicate item that has fallen victim to the agitator.  This bag prevents those casualties.  
• Woolite - for handwashing delicates, sweaters, non-machine washable items.
• Sewing Kit- so great to have on hand when you loose a button or have a minor tear in your clothing. 
• Individual sized packets of detergent (for travel)- Stored in my laundry supplies bin, but taken on trips.  These individual sized detergent packets have surprised me with the number of times they have come in handy.  
• Washing Machine Cleaner- works in both top and front load washing machines.  Helps to reduce odor causing residues that build up in your washing machine over time. 

Other Laundry Closet Staples

• Ironing Board- nothing fancy, just something to get the job done.  
• Real Simple Drying Rack - compact storage, yet expands to accommodate many items at once.  This drying rack is an essential when laundering delicates. 
• Martha Stewart Stain Removal Chart- so helpful to have on hand.  Many articles of clothing in my house have been spared thanks to this chart. 
• World Market's Laundry Symbol Chart - all of the symbols on your clothing care tags are explained on this chart.  Best part?  It's magnetic so you can sick it right on your washer/dryer for easy reference.  
• Liquid or Powdered Detergent- everyone has their own preference when it comes to detergent. I'm a dye & fragrance free-liquid detergent girl myself.
• Extra Large Canister of Powdered Oxiclean - I am a huge fan of Oxiclean.  I add a scoop of Oxiclean to almost every load of laundry because it gets stains out, brightens whites and preserves colors.  More to come in future posts on additional reasons for how/why I love Oxiclean.  
• Bleach - Although not visible, there is a bottle of bleach tucked on top of the Washer/Dryer behind the Oxiclean. Reason? Bleach is very potent and I try to only use it sparingly.